


this delicate thread we're walking on

by sunshineshades



Series: SVT/Woozi oneshot i wrote during partial lockdown [4]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Not Beta Read, a little bit of mafia au, but thats not the main focus here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-23
Updated: 2020-03-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:14:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23286094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshineshades/pseuds/sunshineshades
Summary: Jihoon found a boy lying on the street, covered in bruises. Seeing how no one wanted to even get close to the boy, Jihoon made the decision to bring him back to his place and treated his wounds. Even if his subconscious mind deterred him from doing that.Because the boy he just brought back was Dino. One of the youngest members of a mafia gang there. The son of the head Lee.
Relationships: Lee Chan | Dino & Lee Jihoon | Woozi, Lee Chan | Dino/Lee Jihoon | Woozi
Series: SVT/Woozi oneshot i wrote during partial lockdown [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1669018
Comments: 5
Kudos: 75





	this delicate thread we're walking on

**Author's Note:**

> I don't intend this to become an angsty fic. And rest assured, it's not. I hope.

"Who gave you that black eye?" Jihoon asked at the boy sitting across him in an attempt to lift the mood. The steam from the teacups before them clouded his sight for a while, momentarily obscuring the expression of the other. The mochi ice cream on the plate was left untouched. The question he threw a moment ago was left hanging in the air, enfolded in silence. 

The boy's lips were sealed shut. He merely sat still, eyes fixed on the table. His brows furrowed. His teeth gritted. His expression inscrutable. 

Jihoon sighed. He studied the boy's face, tracing every inch of his features with his eyes. The black bruise beneath the boy's left eye was a stark contrast to his fair skin, but then again it was already flawed with scratches and old wounds. Where did he got those from Jihoon never bothered to know. 

Dino. That's what they called the boy. The name they used when they dealt with some shady business and thrusted the boy into it every time the need arose. Rumour had it that he's actually not the biological nor illegitimate son of the head Lee. The man found the boy somewhere by chance and decided to take him under his wing, probably to piss off the others who were trying to take over his domain, by having a son, an heir. None of it was ever proved, but because majority of them believed it to be the case, what began as an assumption somehow morphed into an absolute truth.

And Jihoon was aware of it. He was aware of everything that had been going on around the small city. He also knew fully well that the boy was not someone he should mess with, because he could lose a finger if he ever took a wrong step. It was never in his principle, however, to just let a young boy lie still on the street, with blood on his shirt and fists, bruises covered his skin. The people who did see him refused to offer help, for fear of the boy's identity. As much as Jihoon condemned such kind of attitude, he still could understand their reasons. 

"You're not eating it?" Jihoon asked, breaking the heavy silence. "That stuff is pricey, you know. I bought it only because there's sale. You should be grateful I offer you one," he added, nodding at the mochi ice cream. 

"Why'd you do it?" The boy eventually spoke. His voice was quiet and soft Jihoon would have failed to catch the words he said if he didn't listen close enough. 

Jihoon heaved a breath. He knew what the boy was asking about. "Because you were dying."

The boy shot him a look. It was hard to gauge his mood or his thought. Jihoon wondered if it was the result of growing up in such condescending environment around unfathomable people whose thoughts might just be about killing each other, or if it was because of his swollen eye. 

"I know who you are," Jihoon said. "I know you're from the Lee gang. You're actually pretty popular here. Did you know that?"

No response from the boy. 

"What I did at that time was just helping some teenage kid who got beaten up by some nasty people. That's all."

"I can get up by myself," the boy replied. There was a strain in his voice. 

"Really? You looked like you'd pass out anytime soon if I didn't come over to help."

The boy scowled. 

Jihoon shrugged. 

The boy got up to his feet, the sound of the chair scraping against the floor loud and clear in the quiet of the room. He winced but quickly put on his usual serious look again when he noticed Jihoon quietly observing him. Turning around, he scanned the apartment room in search for something. 

"The door's that way...if that's what you're looking for," Jihoon said and pointed his finger in a direction. 

The boy snorted, in anger or annoyance Jihoon couldn't be sure, and before long the slamming of the front door rang throughout the place. 

Jihoon looked down at the mochi ice cream and sighed. 

It had been three days since the incident. Not once did Jihoon see the boy, or even catch his glimpse. Not until today. 

Stopping in his track, Jihoon studied the boy from afar. He was squatting down, his back toward him so Jihoon couldn't figure out what the boy was doing. Initially, he planned to ignore the boy. Just let him be with his own business. Yet Jihoon found himself slowly approaching him, his footsteps quiet for fear the boy would run away like a cat would. 

But before he could reach him, the boy was already turning around, a dagger in his hand as he swiped its sharp, pointy tip across Jihoon's shin. Like a rose blooming, blood oozed from the wound and seeped hrough the fabric. Jihoon immediately fell down and winced, hands grabbing his leg. He gave a grimace of pain. 

"Is this how you people say hi to each other?" Jihoon whined.

It took the boy a while to realize who he had just hurt. He let out a small gasp. His grasp on the dagger loosened and before long it clanged on the ground. The boy froze in his spot, having no idea what to do next in this kind of situation. 

He noticed the restlessness in the boy's jerky moves. It was as though he wanted to help Jihoon out but didn't know how to. "Do you have something I can...use to stop the bleeding? Like a cloth...or anything?" 

On hearing that, the boy hastily picked up the dagger and tore the hem of his shirt. He handed the piece of cloth over to Jihoon and stuffed the dagger into the leather sheath in a hurry. 

"Are you sure it's okay to do that to your shirt? Looks like an expensive brand."

"Shut up! Just stop the bleeding already," the boy replied. A crease formed between his brows. 

The corner of his lips quirked up into a smirk. Before long Jihoon tied the cloth around his shin, covering the wound inflicted by the boy. Blood was still oozing from it, but it would clot soon, hopefully before he reached his apartment. All he had to do next was to endure the stinging that came from the wound. _Thank goodness it's not that deep._ Jihoon let out a sigh and shot the boy a look. "You hurt me," he said, matter-of-factly. 

The boy's frown deepened. 

"Take me back to my place. If you feel guilty of it."

They exchanged a look with each other. Jihoon, a sanguine one. The boy, a bewildered look. But it wasn't long afterward that they began to move. The destination, Jihoon's apartment. He limped all the way there, while the boy glanced around warily, concerns written all over his face. For some reason Jihoon could guess what might have been bothering the other. 

"You look like a beggar right now," Jihoon blurted, staring at the now tattered shirt the boy wore. 

That prompted the boy to glare at Jihoon.

Jihoon merely smiled in return. 

He had forced the boy to stay at his place while he disinfected his wound, giving him one of his well-known death glares when the boy tried to make a leave. He even gave the boy a good scolding and lecture about how dangerous it was to carry around a dagger like that. Before the boy left, he served him mochi ice cream and forced him to eat, bringing up the matter of how he didn't even take a bite of it the last time he was here as an excuse. The boy groaned in displeasure, but because of the condescending look he received from Jihoon, he eventually ate it if it meant he could get out of that place. 

Although he only ate half of it, Jihoon was pleased.

He thought it was enough for the boy to stay, listen to his blabbering, and eat the mochi ice cream as he was told to if he felt guilty for what he had done to Jihoon. In a way, he was giving the boy a chance to make amend of his mistake and ease the guilt. However, Jihoon didn't expect to see the boy again the next day when he left the apartment building for work. The boy was sitting on the tire swings at the nearby park. 

At first, Jihoon thought it was just a pure coincidence. Maybe he's just loitering around or have a job to do here. That's what Jihoon assumed. So he merely said hi to the boy like it was the most natural thing to do and after a while, stopped minding it. But when he kept seeing and saying hi to the boy for almost a week, Jihoon ceased to believe that it was just a coincidence. 

"Not trying to chase you away or anything," Jihoon said when he saw the boy again today, as usual. "But what are you doing here?"

The boy said nothing. Instead, he looked away. For a split second, Jihoon thought he could see the blush creeping onto the boy's cheeks. But he banished the thought instantly, thinking that it's probably because of the heat. 

"Do you have business around here or something?" Jihoon threw another question when the boy seemed he would never answer the first one. "You do know the kids got scared to play here because you're at their"—Jihoon gesticulated at the park—"territory."

After a moment of silence, the boy finally opened his mouth. "I know," he said in a low mutter. 

"Or maybe you actually want to play with them?"

A glare from the boy. 

Jihoon huffed out a laugh. "Okay, okay. I'm just kidding." He studied the boy a moment longer. Jihoon then fished his apartment key from his pocket and chucked it at the boy. "Catch."

The boy fumbled with the key and shot Jihoon a dazed look. 

"Key. For my place. I have a spare, if you're wondering about that. Anyway, you can go play there if you want. Just don't thrash my apartment." Jihoon glanced at his watch. "Gotta go. Bye!" 

When he got back home from work that day, Jihoon was a little disappointed to see no trace of the boy's presence there. 

But he did see him again the next day and the day after and the day after the day after that, sitting on the tire swings as always. At this point, Jihoon thought the whole tire swings at the park had officially become the boy's territory. Every time he passed by him, Jihoon would always welcome the boy to his place, assuring him that he could use the key to enter his apartment and sit everywhere he want to and eat as many mochi ice cream as his stomach desired. 

However, the boy still seemed hesitant and whenever Jihoon got back to his place after work, he would sigh heavily at the sight of his undisturbed space. 

Jihoon was arguing with himself one day trying to decide whether or not he should take back the key to his apartment from the boy or just let him keep it and risk of his place getting robbed if the boy ever lost the key and it fell on the wrong hand instead. After wasting an hour of his precious sleep time, Jihoon thought it might be better if he asked the boy first. 

When the next day arrived, however, Jihoon didn't see him. The boy. He was not sitting on the tire swings as he would always do and that sight perplexed Jihoon deeply. For a second, he was worried if something bad befell the boy, but instantly put the thought at the back of his head when he recognized it as his mind's catastrophizing. Two weeks ago, the sight of the boy sitting there had been an unusual one. Maybe he got tired of me saying hi to him every single time I passed by him, Jihoon thought. He hurried to his workplace. 

Working at a 24-hour convenience store was not really in his life plan, but for the money, he tried not to mind the part where he had to force a smile on his face and said "Welcome" in a most amicable manner ever every time a customer entered the air-conditioned place. His co-worker, Junhui, had pointed out how awkward his smile was to him when he first worked there and gave Jihoon a free lesson he never asked for on how to smile more naturally and friendlier. 

It did benefit him in some ways. 

"The new part-timer starts today, so you can go back earlier. I'll cover the next hour shift," Junhui told him. 

"Oh, okay. Then, tomorrow I'll cover the shift?"

Junhui nodded once. 

The store had been understaffed for quite some time now and Jihoon was seriously infuriated at how long the manager had let this issue leave unresolved. As a consequence, Junhui and him, the only staff willing to keep working there, were forced to work overtime to cover the evening and night shifts. Thank goodness the manager finally decided to hire a new employee, even if they're just a part-timer. 

When the clock struck eleven, Jihoon clocked out, waved goodbye at Junhui, gave a nod at Soonyoung, the part-timer, and rushed back home to rest and relax. The thought of spending his night away at home instead of the convenience store brought him a great joy. Jihoon could barely contain it from breaking out onto his face as a wide grin. 

The first thing Jihoon noticed when he walked into his home was the unfamiliar pair of sneakers. A crease formed between his brows as Jihoon observed the shoes. It wasn't his. That, he could confirm. _So then, whose is it?_

It didn't take long for Jihoon to guess who the owner of the sneakers might be and at the mere thought of the person, Jihoon's face glowed up. He rushed to the living room and his smiled widened the moment his eyes landed on the boy's startled face. The other, however, was standing in an awkward position, his entire body seemed to tense up when Jihoon showed up unexpectedly. 

"I, uh, I..." The boy fumbled for words to say to explain his presence there at this hour. The sound from TV served as a background noise. Jihoon glanced at it. The boy was watching the night gag show. 

"Ah, it's been so long since I watched this show!" Jihoon said and walked toward the TV. A small laughter escaped from him after one of the comedians delivered his punchline. 

The boy stared at him quietly for a moment before he made a leave. But Jihoon immediately grabbed his arm, as if it was a reflex action. 

"Where are you going? Aren't you gonna watch it?" Jihoon asked when he noticed the boy looked at him and then his arm and back at him. "Isn't that why you come here?"

The boy hesitated. "Don't you...mind it? Me being here?"

Jihoon raised his eyebrows. "No. I mean, I'm the one who gave you the key to my place. Why should I mind if you're here?" The boy was about to speak when Jihoon cut him off. "Come, sit. Have you eaten yet? I can make ramen if you want."

"I—I'm fine. I'm not hungry," the boy responded. After a moment of hesitation, he eventually sat on the couch again and tried to focus his attention back on the TV screen. 

Jihoon stole a glance at the boy and said, "Okay. Just don't ask me if you can have a bite later." 

The boy didn't reply him but Jihoon could somehow guess what kind of expression the other wore right now. 

A smile graced his features.

It had become some sort of a habit for him to buy something from the convenience store he worked at before he left for home. Especially when his shift ended at 11 p.m. Junhui who was as observant as ever had inquired him on his new habit, wondering if there's anything that prompted the start of the new change. Soonyoung, who had adjusted very well with his new workplace and colleagues, joined in on Junhui's inquiry. The blonde boy seemed so keen about it. 

Jihoon dismissed their questions, however, by saying that he was just stocking up on supply food for when the apocalypse finally hit the earth. Both Junhui and Soonyoung didn't buy that answer, obviously, but none of them pushed the question even further. Which Jihoon was eternally grateful for. 

"Why you keep on bringing back stuff every time you come back from work? I thought you're broke," the boy said when he saw the plastic bag in Jihoon's hand. 

"Just because." Jihoon shrugged and placed the plastic bag on the dining table. He took out an ice cream. "Want one?"

"I don't really like vanilla," the boy mumbled. Nevertheless, he took the ice cream from Jihoon and carefully tore open the packaging. 

The corner of his lips twitched upward and Jihoon shook his head briefly as he grabbed an ice cream for himself. 

The two of them sat on the couch in silence, ice cream in their hands, eyes fixed on the movie playing on the TV screen. But instead of paying attention to what the actor was talking about Jihoon's mind drifted to somewhere else. Glancing at the boy sitting comfortably next to him, Jihoon couldn't help but notice that the black bruise beneath the boy's eye had completely healed. So did the scratches and the wounds. What left on his fair skin was some small scars one wouldn't notice if one didn't look hard enough. 

The wound on his shin had healed as well. There was no trace of it ever being cut by the tip of the boy's dagger. The only proof of such incident ever happened would be the tear in the left leg of the pants Jihoon wore on that day, which he still kept and had not yet fixed. 

Jihoon had no idea how long it had been since the day he brought the boy back to his place after finding him nearly dying on the street. He also had no idea how did they end up getting close like this. Jihoon gave it a thought and after a moment concluded that giving the boy the key to his apartment was indeed a good move on his side. But the way they had been interacting with each other these days, and seeing how often the boy crashed into his place at night, it bothered Jihoon in some way too. 

Because he knew who the boy was. He knew all too well what the boy did during the day instead of going to school like other kids his age did. And he understood, truly, that the boy being here at time like this instead of his house might invite some kind of danger, not only to Jihoon but also to the boy himself. Unless the man was the type who couldn't care less about who his son was seeing and where he had been every night, Jihoon wouldn't be bothered by this constant unsettling feeling of impending doom. Even so, none of the men from the gang had ever come barging into his apartment, and warned as well as threatened him yet. While it brought a temporary peace to his mind for the time being, Jihoon couldn't help but glance at the doorway every once in a while for any sign of intruder. 

This delicate thread the two of them were walking on right now, Jihoon wondered how long it could last. How long could it bear their weights before it snapped and cut their skin, bringing them to their fall? 

Jihoon stole another glance at the boy. Dino. That's his name. But not a real one. And never once did Jihoon use it to address the boy. He didn't like it. He had always thought such name didn't sound fitting for him. Jihoon heaved a breath. He wondered what the boy's real name might be. The only thing he knew was that the boy's surname must be Lee. 

"Hey," Jihoon said. "What's your name?"

The boy shot him a brief look. "I thought you said I'm popular around here."

"Yeah, I know. But not that one. Dino sounds tacky to me." He cringed at the way the name rolled on his tongue. "What I mean is your real name."

Jihoon thought he saw the subtle change in the other's expression. There was a moment of silence before the boy spoke. "Why you want to know?"

Jihoon shrugged. "I thought we're buddies by now. So why not?"

"I don't even know your name."

"What?! Really? I thought I had told you once," Jihoon said, taken aback. 

"No. You never did."

Jihoon contemplated for a while. "Okay. Let's do this. I'll tell you my name if you tell me yours."

"I don't really want to know your name that much." A whine escaped from the boy later on after Jihoon punched his arm, a little harder than he'd intended. The boy shot Jihoon a look, hesitating for a moment before he finally told him his name. "Lee Chan."

Jihoon shifted closer to the boy, eyes lit up when he heard it. "Lee Chan?" he repeated after the boy, his voice slightly higher. 

The boy named Lee Chan frowned. "Aren't you gonna tell me what's your name now? A deal is a deal."

Jihoon let out a small laugh. "Okay. Mine's Jihoon. Lee Jihoon."

The boy named Lee Chan nodded, slowly. He looked as if he was trying to etch the name on his memory forever, which Jihoon secretly wished was the case.   
  
"Hey, Chan, can I join your gang? My surname's Lee too." Jihoon playfully nudged the other. 

"What? No. Stop joking. And please don't call me Chan," he said, a little firmly, with a disapproving look on his face. 

"Why not? It's your name."

"Just...don't."

"Why, you don't like it?" Jihoon tried to read the boy's expression when he was met with silence. "But I like it. Chan sounds way better than Dino."

They exchanged a look with each other for a moment and before long Chan broke it. He turned back to the TV, propped his head on his fist, and mumbled, "Whatever."

Jihoon smiled fondly at the boy before he, too, diverted his gaze back to the movie. Letting the sound from the TV washed over him, Jihoon reclined in the couch. 

Lee Chan. He liked the sound of it. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading ♡
> 
> Kudos and comments are appreciated!


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